Online Mgen test referral · Australia-wide testing
FREEwith Medicare (bulk-billed)
A Specialist GP arranges your test over a quick phone call — they confirm it’s right for you, add the resistance test, and send your referral by SMS. No Medicare? Prefer no call? Order it online for $39 instead.
Mgen testing is for symptoms or a known exposure, not routine screening.
Book a bulk-billed phone consult — or order a $39 referral
Get tested at any pathology lab Australia-wide — simply walk in
Results by SMS in 2-3 days — free telehealth if positive
Pathology tests covered by Medicare and most Private Health Insurers.
Mgen Testing
Mgen testing is not part of the standard STI screen. It is recommended mainly if you have symptoms (urethritis or cervicitis), if symptoms persisted after chlamydia or gonorrhoea treatment, or if a partner has Mgen. Routine Mgen screening for people without symptoms is not recommended — it can lead to treating an infection that may never cause harm, using antibiotics that resistance is making less reliable.
Ask about the resistance test add-on. Mgen has become highly resistant to the usual first-line antibiotic, so a positive result alone is not enough — a resistance test tells the Specialist GP which treatment will actually work. It is worth adding whenever Mgen is detected.
What Mgen is. Mycoplasma genitalium is a small bacterium that lives in the genital and urinary tract, only recognised as a clinically important infection in the last 20 years. It causes urethritis in men and cervicitis in women, though many people carry it with no symptoms at all. In women, untreated infection may contribute to pelvic inflammatory disease, although the evidence is less established than it is for chlamydia.
Symptoms. When symptoms appear, usually 1 to 3 weeks after exposure, they look like chlamydia or gonorrhoea — discharge, burning when peeing, or pelvic discomfort. Because they are indistinguishable by symptoms alone, the only way to confirm Mgen is a specific test for it.
When it matters most. Mgen is especially relevant when symptoms persist after treatment for chlamydia or gonorrhoea, because it often co-occurs and is not cleared by the antibiotics used for those infections. A man treated for non-specific urethritis whose symptoms do not settle, or a woman with persistent cervicitis, is a classic example of when an Mgen test changes management.
How the test works. The test is a nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) on a first-pass urine sample for men or a self-collected vaginal swab for women, most reliable from about two weeks after a possible exposure. Pathology is covered by Medicare and most Private Health Insurers.
What a positive result means. A Specialist GP calls you to arrange treatment, guided by the resistance result where one is available. Resistance-guided treatment is now standard practice, because the older single-dose approach frequently fails.
Why getting it right matters. Repeating an antibiotic that has already failed leaves the infection untreated and makes it harder to clear next time. Matching the treatment to the test result is what protects both you and the antibiotics that still work.
Test of cure. Unlike most STIs, Mgen needs a follow-up test about three to four weeks after treatment to confirm it has cleared, because resistance means the first course does not always work. If it persists, a different antibiotic guided by the resistance result is used. This follow-up is part of getting treatment right.
Frequently asked questions
Mycoplasma genitalium (Mgen for short) is a sexually transmitted bacterium that was only confirmed as a cause of human infection in the 1980s and recognised as a clinically important cause of infection in the past two decades. Many people are unaware of it because it has not historically been part of routine STI screening in Australia. It causes urethritis in men and cervicitis in women, often with no symptoms, and is increasingly important to test for in people whose symptoms persisted after standard treatment for chlamydia or gonorrhoea.
Not usually. Australian guidelines reserve Mgen testing for people with symptoms (discharge, burning urination, pelvic pain), persistent symptoms after chlamydia or gonorrhoea treatment, sexual contacts of someone diagnosed with Mgen, or assessment for pelvic inflammatory disease. Routine screening of people without symptoms is not recommended because the infection is common, often does not cause harm, and treating large numbers of people would accelerate antibiotic resistance. The Specialist GP can discuss whether Mgen testing is appropriate for your specific situation.
Yes, this is one of the main reasons to test specifically for Mgen. Persistent urethral symptoms after standard chlamydia treatment is a classic presentation. The same antibiotic regimen that clears chlamydia does not reliably clear Mgen, so an Mgen co-infection that was not diagnosed at the start continues to cause symptoms. The Specialist GP can arrange the Mgen test (ideally with the resistance assay) and discuss what regimen would apply if it is positive.
The resistance assay is an add-on to the standard Mgen test that checks for specific genetic mutations in the bacterium that predict whether the standard treatment will work. About half of Mgen infections in Australia carry one of these mutations, and treating with the standard regimen when resistance is present leaves the infection in place. The Specialist GP usually requests the resistance assay alongside the Mgen test when testing for a positive contact or for persistent symptoms after standard treatment.
At least 2 weeks. Mgen NAAT tests are reliable from about 2 weeks after the last possible exposure. If you have current symptoms (discharge, burning urination), testing earlier is reasonable because symptomatic infections usually have higher bacterial loads. For testing after a known exposure to a partner with Mgen, the 2-week wait is the standard.
Repeat the test 2 weeks after your last sexual contact with them. A negative result early in the window can become positive once the infection has had time to develop. Unlike for some STIs, treating partners on the basis of a positive contact alone is not the standard approach for Mgen because of the resistance situation — a confirmed positive result with a resistance assay guides treatment more reliably. The Specialist GP can discuss what makes sense for your situation.
Typically 3 to 5 business days, including the resistance assay if added. This is longer than standard chlamydia and gonorrhoea results (1 to 2 days) because the resistance test runs as a separate lab step. Some labs only process Mgen tests on specific days of the week, which can add another day or two. Urgent results can sometimes be expedited through the Specialist GP if symptoms are severe or there is a clinical reason.
Pathology lab fees for Mgen testing have a Medicare item number that applies in specific situations — particularly for symptomatic presentations and for persistent symptoms after chlamydia or gonorrhoea treatment. The resistance assay add-on may have a separate fee depending on your pathology provider. People without Medicare have different fee arrangements. See our fees page for Clinic365 fees, and the Specialist GP can confirm the pathology fee structure at booking.
For men, the first-part urine sample is the standard test for Mgen — the same sample used for chlamydia and gonorrhoea testing. Hold the urine for at least an hour before collecting. For women, a self-collected vaginal swab is more sensitive than urine for Mgen. The Specialist GP discusses which sample makes sense at the consult, and the same referral can usually cover chlamydia, gonorrhoea, and Mgen at one sample.
Not by default. Pathology results go to the ordering clinician (the Specialist GP at Clinic365) rather than your regular GP. If you would like a summary sent to your regular GP, mention this at the consult and we can arrange that with your consent. Mgen is not a notifiable infection in most Australian jurisdictions, so there is no public health reporting required.
